Smartphone Vendor Xiaomi Targets U.S. Market

The Google Vice President of Android Product Management, Hugo Barra, has been hired by Xiaomi, in order to assist the Chinese smartphone company enter the U.S. market.

Speaking recently, Barra said: "In a few weeks, I'll be joining the Xiaomi team in China to help them expand their incredible product portfolio and business globally - as Vice President, Xiaomi Global."

Xiaomi has a $10 billion valuation, after completing a fourth round of funding. Furthermore, more smartphones have been sold by the company on the Chinese market than Apple.

TrendForce is a global research firm which notes that Xiaomi is "eagerly" expanding on foreign markets. According to TrendForce, Xiaomi has three tiers of cost control for Xiaomi's domestic success, and does not think the company will change strategies in foreign markets.

In particular, the Chinese vendor is known for unveiling devices a whole quarter before their release, which means that the cost of components decrease in the time being. Furthermore, Xiaomi has control over its inventory through selling direct, primarily from its online store; this means that there are fewer chances of over-production. The company also depends a lot on free social media platforms for advertising, according to TrendForce.

79.3 percent of market share in Q2 of 2013 was controlled by Android, and it is the worldwide operating system of choice, according to IDC. With the inclusion of Barra, Xiaomi is capitalizing on Android intellectual property.

Bardissi Enterprises is a solution provider based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The president of that company, George Bardissi, voiced his concern over the company's relevance in the U.S. market, stating: "Everybody thinks they are going to come out with a new device and get rich. The reality is, it is already a very crowded market."

The key aspect of the channel should be to ensure that standardization occurs to organize which devices and operating systems companies support, and what they do not support. Bardissi said it is "cumbersome and unfeasible to accommodate every time a new player shows up [on the market]."

Having standardized support on mobile devices and operating systems can be made easier by having a standardized operating system.

Bardissi stated: "The problem with Android is, there is no set version of Android. It is so fractured. Unlike an iPhone, regardless of what version of an iPhone you have, the software is the same across the board."

Xiaomi has made strong moves in order to extend the reach of the company, and has hired Barra to meet this end; Bardissi, however, does not think the company will be able to successfully make a mark in the U.S. market.

He said: "Until I see liability in a product and have time to test and validate it, this [executive move] just does not make me jump out of my seat." (CY) Link